Meade Autostar Update of Satellite data

[DavidIN25]

Given software restrictions is it possible to have Stellarium to pull the two line elements to update Meade Autostar? Elements.... http://www.celestrak.com/NORAD/elements/

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[gzotti]

Does Meade Autostar support satellite tracking? I see no hints in the available protocol documentation. RTS2 supports satellite tracking, maybe you can drive a Meade with it?

[DavidIN25]

Stellarium can drive the scope, which is a work around I'm seeing now. Stellarium up dates it's Ephesians what I'm asking is given software restrictions can a feature be added that will update Meade's Autostar so the Autostar gets its Ephesians updated to run the telescope with out a PC.

In other words Meade has a updater but It is tied to Windows plus with hardware changes, no serial port. I'm running into issues updating my Autostar running Linux. I'm using a Win 10 VM but the USB to serial is not easy to configure the com port, there is a setting for other but drilling backwards for the path is above me. The updater downloads fine but Win 10 needs to download a driver for a HP thumb drive but can't find.

David

On Mon, Jun 15, 2020, 4:54 AM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

Does Meade Autostar support satellite tracking? I see no hints in the available protocol documentation. RTS2 supports satellite tracking, maybe you can drive a Meade with it?

— You are receiving this because you authored the thread. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-643996871, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISB7UN63BVAPKEDPNGTRWXOTTANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[gzotti]

Stellarium can send "Goto RA/DE", and not much else. The question is whether the communication protocol with Meade telescopes supports feeding the telescope with TLE data so that the telescope can follow satellites, to which I see no no information in the available documentation. The only telescope tracking module in Stellarium which can follow satellites is RTS2.

It seems you are requesting a feature from Stellarium's voluntary developers that only Meade's engineers could do. https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/wiki/FAQ#why-dont-you-implement Ephesians, Corinthians, Romans, and likely other inhabitants of the planet owning Meade telescopes will be happy if Meade can add satellite ephemerides.

[gzotti]

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/605945-goto-mount-capable-of-tracking-satellites/

[DavidIN25]

Meade ETX scope can track satellites

It's the update of the TLE that is a problem when I've moved from Windows to Linux, only have VM'S of Windows for legacy software, and due to age am getting sever cert errors at download of TLE data, even with the most current updater.

http://www.weasner.com/etx/autostar/as_satellite.html

On Mon, Jun 15, 2020, 7:32 AM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/605945-goto-mount-capable-of-tracking-satellites/

— You are receiving this because you authored the thread. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-644073575, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISBFQ7WSIIJTYZPZXWDRWYBGHANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[jeremy-taylor]

Meade Audiostar on my LX65 can track satellites but of course the ephemeris data (the "Ephesians" @DavidIN25 mentioned?) are completely out of date and useless. From the LX65 manual: From my own experiments with Stellarium connected to the LX65 via Audiostar, I can select a satellite and CTRL+1 it, and the scope will slew the point the satellite WAS when I hit CTRL+1, but although Stellarium continues to track the satellite, it fails to continue to send repositioning commands to the scope. The AstroFinder Software mentioned in the manual is obsolete and not provided by Meade anymore. If Stellarium was able to push TLE data to the AutoStar/AudioStar in place of the obsolete AstroFinder software so the satellite TLEs were up-to-date that would be cool - then I could select a satellite in AudioStar and the mount would be able to track it using the latest TLE info. But lets face it, the interface of hand controllers bites, and actually finding the right satellite is awful, what you REALLY want to do is to click on the satellite in Stellarium. Having Stellarium just update the TLEs would still mean that Stellarium would not be able to track the object. If it would also be able to tell the handset to select a satellite object and hand over the slewing to the hand controller, then that could work, but that isn't how any of the scope control works, does it? What is therefore needed is for Stellarium to continue sending repositioning commands when a satellite object is selected and CTRL+1 is hit, the same sort of on-going position adjustments as are issued by guiders.

[gzotti]

As written in the User Guide and earlier in this thread, Stellarium's telescope control issues single GOTO RA/DEC commands, and not much else. Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium. If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

[jeremy-taylor]

Stellarium does only issue single GOTO commands. So perhaps this issue (or should I create another issue?) should be an enhancement request to have Stellarium issue more than a single command to adjust for tracking objects that do not move at sidereal rate?

[gzotti]

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because information about the commands is not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

[DavidIN25]

What I am looking for is a native Linux program to up date the telescope TLE's , the Autostar. The scope already tracks what ever the TLE's are, satellites, planets. Meade's Autostar updater program is having Cert issues at download, all it's doing is downloading plan text and placing it to a specific file.

I have not yet looked if Celes Trak Retriever let's one specify where the download is placed, which would be the Meade's Autostar Updater TLE folder file.

But again it's not native Linux.

http://www.celestrak.com/SpaceTrack/TLERetriever3Help.php

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 1:04 PM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because the commands are not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-653624788, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISEDIT6YSQPPIHQAKKLRZYFRFANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[DavidIN25]

https://blog.wolfram.com/2014/12/29/serial-interface-control-of-astronomical-telescopes/

Some info might help.

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:16 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

What I am looking for is a native Linux program to up date the telescope TLE's , the Autostar. The scope already tracks what ever the TLE's are, satellites, planets. Meade's Autostar updater program is having Cert issues at download, all it's doing is downloading plan text and placing it to a specific file.

I have not yet looked if Celes Trak Retriever let's one specify where the download is placed, which would be the Meade's Autostar Updater TLE folder file.

But again it's not native Linux.

http://www.celestrak.com/SpaceTrack/TLERetriever3Help.php

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 1:04 PM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because the commands are not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-653624788, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISEDIT6YSQPPIHQAKKLRZYFRFANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[DavidIN25]

http://www.skymtn.com/mapug-astronomy/ragreiner/lx200CmdSet.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:25 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

https://blog.wolfram.com/2014/12/29/serial-interface-control-of-astronomical-telescopes/

Some info might help.

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:16 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

What I am looking for is a native Linux program to up date the telescope TLE's , the Autostar. The scope already tracks what ever the TLE's are, satellites, planets. Meade's Autostar updater program is having Cert issues at download, all it's doing is downloading plan text and placing it to a specific file.

I have not yet looked if Celes Trak Retriever let's one specify where the download is placed, which would be the Meade's Autostar Updater TLE folder file.

But again it's not native Linux.

http://www.celestrak.com/SpaceTrack/TLERetriever3Help.php

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 1:04 PM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because the commands are not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-653624788, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISEDIT6YSQPPIHQAKKLRZYFRFANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[DavidIN25]

http://www.weasner.com/etx/autostar/as_cable.html

May help also...

http://www.weasner.com/etx/autostar/as_cable.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:27 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

http://www.skymtn.com/mapug-astronomy/ragreiner/lx200CmdSet.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:25 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

https://blog.wolfram.com/2014/12/29/serial-interface-control-of-astronomical-telescopes/

Some info might help.

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:16 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

What I am looking for is a native Linux program to up date the telescope TLE's , the Autostar. The scope already tracks what ever the TLE's are, satellites, planets. Meade's Autostar updater program is having Cert issues at download, all it's doing is downloading plan text and placing it to a specific file.

I have not yet looked if Celes Trak Retriever let's one specify where the download is placed, which would be the Meade's Autostar Updater TLE folder file.

But again it's not native Linux.

http://www.celestrak.com/SpaceTrack/TLERetriever3Help.php

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 1:04 PM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because the commands are not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-653624788, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISEDIT6YSQPPIHQAKKLRZYFRFANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[DavidIN25]

http://www.skymtn.com/mapug-astronomy/ragreiner/LX200Commands.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:33 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

http://www.weasner.com/etx/autostar/as_cable.html

May help also...

http://www.weasner.com/etx/autostar/as_cable.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:27 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

http://www.skymtn.com/mapug-astronomy/ragreiner/lx200CmdSet.html

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:25 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

https://blog.wolfram.com/2014/12/29/serial-interface-control-of-astronomical-telescopes/

Some info might help.

David

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 3:16 PM David Wilson n5vtd25@gmail.com wrote:

What I am looking for is a native Linux program to up date the telescope TLE's , the Autostar. The scope already tracks what ever the TLE's are, satellites, planets. Meade's Autostar updater program is having Cert issues at download, all it's doing is downloading plan text and placing it to a specific file.

I have not yet looked if Celes Trak Retriever let's one specify where the download is placed, which would be the Meade's Autostar Updater TLE folder file.

But again it's not native Linux.

http://www.celestrak.com/SpaceTrack/TLERetriever3Help.php

On Fri, Jul 3, 2020, 1:04 PM Georg Zotti notifications@github.com wrote:

More issues on the same topic will be marked as duplicates, closed, and will have no effect.

Nobody has reverse engineered Meade's defunct proprietary software and built in the undocumented protocol to Stellarium.

"Undocumented" means "we have no idea how to do it, because the commands are not available." The only rational solution to this is to accept this, and

If you need satellite tracking, use the RTS2 control.

If somebody knows more about it: we accept working code ("pull request") that has been tested and shown to work on some mount type to which we do not have access.

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/Stellarium/stellarium/issues/1128#issuecomment-653624788, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AIEWISEDIT6YSQPPIHQAKKLRZYFRFANCNFSM4N5XFLWA .

[jeremy-taylor]

@gzotti Can you please clarify, because your replied this to my suggestion, not @DavidIN25 's: Are you nixing the idea of a) updating the Meade handsets with ephemeris data using the proprietary protocol because it is undocumented b) sending more than one GOTO command using the documented interface to keep the mount moving on non-sidereal objects?

If (a) I completely understand. I would ask again: should I raise a separate issue [with my specific suggestion using documented interface] instead? If (b) I am... confused?

[gzotti]

@jeremy-taylor There is no open information to be found regarding the undocumented protocol (meaning (a) looks unsolvable unless somebody provides this information and not just the standard protocol docs) and (b) does not make sense IMO because you will constantly miss the satellite and just torture your drive's motors with start/stop commands.

Maybe you can ask Meade why they are no longer supporting their own products?

[alex-w]

This is a good task for the community to participate in the contribution into Stellarium. Who wants to help us?